The 36-year-old had been the second candidate to declare an interest in replacing Ed Miliband at the helm of the left-wing party.

Why the former former club DJ-turned-solicitor pulled a U-turn and dropped out of the race is subject to intense speculation.

The shadow business secretary, who was the bookies' favourite at 9-4, was pictured walking hand-in-hand with his glamorous lawyer partner Alice Sullivan ahead of his interview on the BBC’s flagship Andrew Marr show last Sunday.

It has been suggested Mr Umunna – branded 'Labour's Obama' more than once – may not appeal to Labour's core working class vote.

He holidays at a £1million Ibiza villa owned by his solicitor mother and has allegedly changed entries on his Wikipedia page to make them sound more favourable.

Umunna once belonged to an exclusive online club called ASmallWorld, where he posted the comment: "Is it just me or is there a serious lack of cool places to go in central London at the weekends?

"Most of the West End haunts seem to be full of trash and C-list wannabes, while other places that should know better opt for the cheesy vibe."

QUIT: Chuka, a former DJ-turned-solicitor, with Ed Miliband at his party's education manifesto launch prior to the election [GETTY]

“One can imagine what running for leader can be like, understand its demands and the attention but nothing compares to actually doing it and the impact on the rest of one's life”

Chuka Umunna

Umunna said today of his brief leadership bid: "I have not found it to be a comfortable experience.

"One can imagine what running for leader can be like, understand its demands and the attention but nothing compares to actually doing it and the impact on the rest of one's life.

"Consequently after further reflection I am withdrawing my candidacy."

Miliband resigned a week ago after Labour was trounced at the polls.

There are still four candidates in the running to be his successor: Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper, Liz Kendall and Mary Creagh.

Mr Burnham is now 6-4 favourite with William Hill to win the Labour leadership race.

The bookmakers make Ms Cooper an 11-4 second favourite and are offering odds of 5-1 for Ms Kendall and 14-1 for Ms Creagh.

The price for Tristam Hunt, who has not formally put himself forward yet, is 12-1 while Labour MPs Stella Creasey and Rushanara Ali, neither of whom has declared, come in at 33-1.

'Once again an early Party leadership contender has not stayed the trip. In the past early favourites, such as Michael Heseltine, who lost out to John Major; David Davis to David Cameron, and David Miliband to Ed Miliband, have all proved costly failures for political punters' said Hill's spokesman Graham Sharpe.

Back on Tuesday, the Streatham MP said he "intends to put himself forward and stand for the leadership of the Labour Party".

He said he believed Labour could win power in five years' time.

Mr Umunna said: "I want to lead that effort as part of a really big Labour team, getting Labour back into office."